Together, We Will Breach the Final Gate

"I... don't want to die..."

The series of piercing cries from underground sent chills down He Wei Ni Ya's spine. She instinctively assumed some kind of monster had crawled up from the ground and immediately tried to take some precautions.

But He Wei Ni Ya was too weak at this moment, and her staff had been destroyed in the previous explosion, leaving her completely unable to do anything.

Moreover, her movements inadvertently caused a faint sound.

The sobbing from deep underground immediately stopped.

Oh no, we've been discovered.

He Wei Ni Ya had a bad feeling, but there was nothing she could do. She could only stare intently at the dark and deep cave entrance, as if some monster might crawl out of it at any moment.

But she waited for a long time without seeing such a monster; instead, she heard a deep, inquiring voice.

Is anyone there?

He Wei Ni Ya narrowed her eyes slightly.

What kind of monster is this that can even talk to people?

Should I respond? If I do, will it immediately rush out and attack me?

After all, sound is the best way to locate things in the dark. There are many wild animals in nature that use sound waves to hunt, so He Wei Ni Ya had to be vigilant.

As for why the other party speaks human language... this is the Abyss Prison, so encountering any monster here is not surprising.

Don't take the bait.

He Wei Ni Ya was thinking this, but the other person's next words disrupted her thoughts once again.

"My name is Diana, and I am the current Contractor of the Abyss Prison," the voice in the darkness said. "I don't know who you are, but I can tell you that Visas's Ring Finger is in my hand."

Diana? Ring Finger?

He Wei Ni Ya was shocked, after all, she had come out of the underground to find this Ring Finger.

But now she's standing right in front of me?

He Wei Ni Ya's first reaction was that this was a trap. The monster underground was most likely a mind reader who knew what she was looking for, and that's why it had disguised itself as her target.

However, He Wei Ni Ya only knew that there was a body part holder in the Abyss Prison, but she did not know which body part it was or its name.

Could this monster not only read minds, but also think and deceive?

He Wei Ni Ya became even more vigilant.

Then, the voice rang out again, but it was not the low, questioning voice from before; instead, it was an even earlier, shrill and mournful cry.

"It hurts... it hurts so much..."

"Mom... don't cut my finger... I don't want that..."

"Please..."

The little girl's plaintive cries echoed again in the empty corridor, sending chills down He Wei Ni Ya's spine once more.

What's going on? Why are you crying again?

The crying lasted for about a minute before reverting to the previous low and weak female voice.

"I know you're there...please answer me," she said. "I don't have much time left."

He Wei Ni Ya's brow furrowed even more.

The monster seems to be in a very chaotic state; is it because it is seriously injured?

The sound continued.

"I sense a familiar aura... it's the power of Visas. So, you are Hand Eye?"

He Wei Ni Ya knew that Hand Eye was Bai Wei's code name, but she still didn't speak, just listened quietly.

The other party quickly dismissed his guess. "No, that's not right... The aura on your body doesn't seem to belong to Hand Eye, but it is definitely Visas's aura... Strange, really strange, who exactly are you?"

Hearing this, He Wei Ni Ya's suspicions that she was a monster lessened considerably, because monsters shouldn't know so much.

Yes, her body parts are special; they carry power rather than rules.

Strength-type corpse parts are naturally shorter than rule-type corpse parts, and are more like unfinished products, otherwise even Bai Wei wouldn't be able to descend on her.

A monster shouldn't know so much.

Moreover, at her prompting, He Wei Ni Ya also consciously tried to sense the aura emanating from her.

I did sense it, but... it was strange, unlike anything before. It was very blurry, as if there was a barrier between us.

And this aura was exactly the same as the one she had sensed from those monsters before.

It seems that those monsters are indeed controlled by the Visas' Corpse Pieces. Although she doesn't know the specifics, He Wei Ni Ya is pretty sure that the person she is talking to right now is the Ring Finger.

"Besides Hand Eye... who else could it be..."

Diana was still muttering to herself, but her condition clearly didn't allow for any deeper thought. After a series of extremely painful groans, she said, "It doesn't matter who you are, but the fact that you're here means you should know what's going on. The Abyss Prison is destroyed, I've failed... No one can stop Isaiah anymore, no one... cough cough cough..."

Diana's words startled He Wei Ni Ya.

The Abyss Prison has been destroyed by Isaiah? Has the situation outside deteriorated to this extent?

Isaiah alone?

Diana continued, "The Obedience of Heavenly Voice hasn't been activated yet... Something must have happened to the Warden as well. So, the Abyss Prison only has one last barrier left... the Final Gate... Einhejar."

The Final Gate, Einhejar.

Is this the last gatekeeper?

He Wei Ni Ya silently memorized the name.

"Ahem, logically speaking, no one can defeat Einhejar. But Isaiah is different... He has the potential. He already has Three Corpse Pieces of his body, no, four... He'll soon have mine. The number one under God, and he's already got four parts of his body, his unpredictability is too great," Diana said. "If Einhejar loses, Final Gate is destroyed... then it's truly over, do you understand what I mean?"

He Wei Ni Ya remained silent.

"Heh... I was foolish too. Since you're already here, your reason for being here is obvious." Diana gave a mocking laugh. "But you can't take him from him. No one can stop him now, unless you're his Hand Eye. But even if you were, I don't know how you could stop Isaiah... Ah, Mother... No..."

Diana's voice became incoherent again, reverting to that mournful little girl's voice.

This time it lasted even longer, so long that He Wei Ni Ya wondered if she would never come back.

Finally, the crying stopped, and Diana's voice was so weak that it could barely be heard.

"I'm going to die," she whispered. "My finger is on the ground, and Isaiah will find it soon, and then my life will be over... But I can't die like this yet, I haven't finished what I'm doing..."

As she spoke, He Wei Ni Ya heard a rustling sound, as if a large reptile was slowly approaching her.

He Wei Ni Ya immediately became alert.

"Don't be nervous, I can't hurt you anymore," Diana said. "I'm here to help you get out of here. I know you're there."

Seeing that Diana had confirmed her location, He Wei Ni Ya broke her silence and asked, "Why are you helping me?"

"Oh, it's a woman?" Diana's weak voice was filled with surprise. "Why a woman... Ah, I see, you're the one Luo Qi mentioned... So that's how it is, so that's how it is... You're not the Hand Eye, nor the tongue, we all misjudged you... But it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter."

He Wei Ni Ya heard a long sigh.

"I'm here to tell you one last thing, the last chance to stop Isaiah," Diana continued. "Deepest underground, before the Final Gate, there is a well filled with water, called the Fountain of Redemption."

"The Fountain of Redemption?" He Wei Ni Ya asked. "What does that do?"

"Summon the Gods."

He Wei Ni Ya's pupils suddenly narrowed.

"The Gods have long since withdrawn from worldly affairs, even the Contract Land they themselves created," Diana said. "The only way to make them aware of everything is through the death of Einhejar, the breaking of the seal on Visas's remains, and... a prayer at the Fountain of Redemption, the latter of which will bring you ultimate salvation."

The ultimate salvation?

The name gave He Wei Ni Ya a clue.

"Anyone who reaches the Final Gate has already committed a heinous crime. Once the Gods find out, they will be severely punished and suffer true divine retribution," Diana whispered. "But if one is willing to turn back and pray and repent to the Fountain of Redemption, one can receive ultimate salvation. All sins will be cleansed, all past transgressions will be forgiven, and one will receive boundless divine Divine Grace. The Gods will promise you everything you desire."

Just as expected, He Wei Ni Ya guessed correctly.

"In other words, as long as you reach the Fountain of Redemption and pray to the Gods, the Gods will personally annihilate Isaiah," Diana said. "And you will get everything—power, strength, money, anything you want, it will be no problem."

He Wei Ni Ya asked, "Then why don't you go?"

"Because the Contract Land isn't on the list of those ultimately saved, if someone can reach the Fountain of Redemption, there can only be one possibility: the Contract Land no longer exists." Diana's voice trailed off. "Besides, I can no longer do anything... So, do you agree?"

Before He Wei Ni Ya could speak, a sudden tremor struck her. She looked up and saw a skeletal, thin yet tall figure lift a collapsed pillar, creating an opening for He Wei Ni Ya to escape.

However, this opening leads to an abyss.

"How you choose is up to you," Diana's voice came from the skull. "Whether you pray to the Fountain of Redemption or knock down the well and refuse salvation, it's none of my business. I'm just fulfilling the last contract of the Contract Land... Leave here."

After a brief hesitation, He Wei Ni Ya struggled to her feet and stepped out of the opening Diana had created.

Then, as she tried to say something more to Diana, she heard another sigh of relief.

"My mission has finally come to an end."

"Mom, you really shouldn't have given me that finger."

With that, the pillar crashed down, smashing Diana's last servant into several pieces.

When He Wei Ni Ya looked back, she could no longer sense any sign of life.

Whew.

A gust of wind blew away the pile of black rubble, revealing a buried black skeleton and the Ring Finger attached to the skeleton's right hand.

"I've finally found you, Ring Finger," Isaiah said softly, having summoned a whirlwind. "You've given me quite a bit of trouble."

The skeleton was lifeless, and its completely carbonized form made it impossible to tell what it looked like before it was born. But Isaiah still nodded slightly, paying his respects to this "unseen" Ring Finger.

The skeletons naturally wouldn't react.

But Isaiah bent down and used his own hands, rather than resorting to magic, to peel the finger off the bone.

However, the moment his fingers touched, Isaiah sensed a faint energy fluctuation and couldn't help but show a hint of surprise.

This finger was being used just a few minutes ago.

In other words, Diana was alive until a few minutes ago? And not only was she alive, she even used the power of the [Contract].

Even though things have already come to that point, are you still thinking about doing something?

Isaiah chuckled softly.

What a troublesome guy. I wish he weren't my opponent.

Come on, let me see what else you've prepared for me.

Isaiah reattached his fingers, then slowly walked to a desolate area and raised his hand.

Left middle finger, right thumb, Ring Finger, right eye.

Termination, Disturbance, Contract, Eternity.

All four rules belong to him alone.

But Isaiah did not show any joy; instead, he showed an elusive... sense of relief.

"Is that so?" he murmured softly. "So that's how it is."

No one knew what Isaiah meant by "this," and he had no one to explain it to.

In the endless desolation, he bent his somewhat lonely body and placed his hand on the ground.

Then exert a little force.

Rumble.

The earth collapsed, and the hidden Abyss Prison reappeared before his eyes.

He finally arrived here.

After Isaiah's most extreme "darkness," most of the sealed artifacts and ferocious beasts underground had died, but some remained.

Isaiah saw them.

Those of them lie dormant deeper underground.

They are dead gods, even more terrifying ancient creatures, second only to Einhejar, beings that even Diana could not restrain.

But Isaiah came, he cut his wrists, and dripped his blood little by little into the abyss, onto those indescribably beating hearts.

The dormant heart resumed beating, one beat after another, as if the earth itself was trembling.

Pairs of scarlet eyes opened, like another night sky.

"Let's see how far I can go."

Isaiah said with a light laugh.

"Beasts, submit to my [contract] and acknowledge me as your master."

"Together we... breached the Final Gate."